


Oh Here We Go Headfirst

by DeerstalkerDeathFrisbee



Series: Big Kids, Look at Us Now [3]
Category: The Dragon Prince (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Dinosaurs, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Valentine's Day Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-03
Updated: 2019-06-03
Packaged: 2020-04-07 00:52:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,934
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19074163
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DeerstalkerDeathFrisbee/pseuds/DeerstalkerDeathFrisbee
Summary: Callum keeps doodling dinosaurs for Soren and Soren keeps sending him dinosaur jokes and their social circle, such as it is, continues to be baffled by the exchange.Then Valentines’ day hits and Callum freaks out.100% pure unadulterated fluff.





	Oh Here We Go Headfirst

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for all your lovely comments and HAPPY PRIDE, Y'ALL!!!!
> 
> I'm hard at work on my original fiction novels (writing two at once right now yeaaaaaah) but I thought I'd take a break to dabble in this AU. I had an idea for a summer fic with these two but then I found this half-finished Valentines' Day nonsense and had to finish it first.
> 
> This is totally un-proofread so I apologize for any egregious typos.

**Oh Here We Go Headfirst**

            It all starts with a dinosaur doodle.

            Callum likes dinosaurs. It’s all Ez’s fault, really. When Ezran was really little, he’d been obsessed with dragons, and when his dad accidentally told him they weren’t, you know, _technically real_ , Ez had been utterly devastated in the way only a small child can be. Callum had tried to make up for it by telling Ez all about how once upon a time giant lizards really _did_ walk, fly, and swim across the earth.

            In hindsight, that was both a stroke of brilliance and a sign that they would never know peace in their house ever again.

            Ez had been hyper-fixated on dinosaurs ( _“real_ dragons, Callum,”) ever since.

            This has, of course, bled over into Callum’s life because for a while Ez sort of _was_ Callum’s life, especially after their mother died.

            So sometimes, when he’s distracted, Callum will absent-mindedly sketch cartoon dinos. On the margins of his notes, on textbooks, and once or twice on his own skin. Little dinosaurs everywhere.

            He’s sitting on Soren’s couch, ‘Raiders of the Lost Art’ playing on the tv. He’s supposed to be going over flashcards for an art history quiz, but he’s sitting between Soren’s legs, leaning his back against his boyfriend’s chest, one of Soren’s arms wrapped around his middle, and really, who needs to study? He’s switched from more studious pursuits to absently scribbling with a Sharpie on what he thinks is his own arm.

            Emphasis on ‘what he thinks’.

            Because as the credits are rolling on another episode Soren says, seemingly out of the blue, “Sweet, a new tattoo.”

            Callum glances, down, his heart jumping into his mouth as he regards the little t-rex merrily rampaging along on Soren’s forearm.

            “Shit, sorry…”

            Soren squeezes him fractionally tighter, “No way, I love it.”

            And that’s that. They go back to watching their show and Callum goes back to scribbling, this time on his own surfaces.

            He figures that will be the end of it.

…

            Callum stops in front of his dorm room door and stares. A clip art dinosaur waves at him from a piece of printer paper, a speech bubble next to its jaws saying “You’re DINO-mite!”

            He takes it down mutely, replacing the pin that held it on the corkboard, unlocking his door and stepping inside. His roommate isn’t there, because he kind of never is, which is a bit of a relief.

            (It’s not that Callum doesn’t _like_ his roommate so much as his roommate is a source of constant frustration and annoyance and smells weird and…ok, he doesn’t like his roommate. He’d live at Soren’s place off-campus permanently and not pay the stupid housing fees if it weren’t against campus policy for underclassmen to live off-campus.)

            He toes off his shoes, still pondering the note. There’s a heart scribbled at the corner. It’s really cheesy and obviously homemade on an ancient version of Microsoft Word.

            Callum loves it. He’s keeping it forever.

            He sends a photo of it to the group chat.

**TEAM AWESOME(LY HORRIBLE)**

**Yer a Wizard ‘arry:** Guess who has a secret admirer?

**i studied the blade:** we all know you have a boyfriend

**i studied the blade:** it would be gross if it wasn’t cute. In a kinda dumb way.

**Magical Girl™:** no, no, it’s dumb in a cute way.

**Dr. Dolittle:** Aww, Cal, your bf is sweet

**i studied the blade:** It had better be your bf. If you have a stalker I’ll have to break some legs.

**Yer a Wizard ‘arry:** …who would stalk me? I’m not exactly alluring~

**Magical Girl™:** I will force self-esteem down your throat until you choke on it

**Dr. Dolittle:** …this went dark in a weird way.

**i studied the blade:** I support violently supportive dark!Claudia

**Magical Girl™:** *bows* thank you, thank you

**do u even lift, bro?:** How do you put these phones on silent?

**Magical Girl™:** Oh my god, Soren.

**Dr. Dolittle:** I’m sorry, are you in class rn?

**Magical Girl™:** Genuine Ezran is Genuine

**i studied the blade:** cinnamon roll…

**Magical Girl™:** too good for this world…

**Yer a Wizard ‘arry:** too pure…

**do u even lift, bro?:** Seriously, guys, is there a way to turn vibrate off on these things? Everyone is staring.

**i studied the blade:** ‘insert vibrator joke here’

**Magical Girl™:** …insert…

**Yer a Wizard ‘arry:** KEEP IT PG ASSHOLES, EZ IS IN THE CONVO

**Yer a Wizard ‘arry:** go to settings, Soren. Click on ‘general’, then ‘sounds’.

**Yer a Wizard ‘arry:** also thank you for my dinosaur

**do u even lift, bro?:** thx, babe. You’re welcome.

**i studied the blade:** …can we start dragging Soren now for not knowing how his iphone works?

**Yer a Wizard ‘arry:** This is what I get for bragging about the cute shit my boyfriend does.

**Dr. Dolittle:** Pretty much, yeah.

…

            Callum feels like he has to retaliate for the dinosaur. Okay, ‘retaliate’ isn’t the right word. You don’t retaliate in a relationship unless you need serious counseling. But Soren did something cute and nice for him, so now Callum feels obligated to do something cute and nice for Soren.

            Except he has no idea how one goes about doing cute and nice things for a significant other. He kind of tripped into this relationship in the first place. He has not clue what he’s doing.

            When in doubt, draw, Callum decides.

            He sketches out an anime-style drawing of Soren as a knight, shining armor and all, and gives him a triceratops as a steed instead of a horse. It seemed apropos. He leaves it in Soren’s student mailbox (okay, he bribes the student postal worker to leave it in Soren’s mailbox – he is a box of girl scout cookies poorer for his efforts at awkward nerd romance).

            Soren doesn’t send a photo of the drawing to the group chat, but he does post it on every form of social media he has, the only caption a rainbow of hearts and all the dinosaur emojis he can find.

            Callum later discovers Soren has also made it the lockscreen on his phone, which is weirdly heartwarming.

            Callum did not anticipate that his actions had instigated a weird dinosaur-themed back and forth between them.

            He really should be smarter than this by now.

…

            Soren starts texting him dinosaur themed puns every morning.

**The Boy:** What do u call a dino that can’t accept defeat?

**Me:** Soren, it’s six am

**The Boy:** a saur loser

**Me:** I’m going back to sleep now

**The Boy:** k <3

**Me:** … sigh… <3

            Callum is beginning to question the wisdom of dating a morning person.

…

            Callum keeps doodling dinosaurs for Soren and Soren keeps sending him dinosaur jokes and their social circle, such as it is, continues to be baffled by the exchange.

            Then Valentines’ day hits and Callum freaks out.

            “Claudia, Rayla, you have to help me,” he says at their dorm room door at ten am. His first class of the day has just gotten out and he knows neither of them have morning classes today.

            Claudia glowers at him from behind a curtain of sleep-mussed black and purple hair. “Do you have hot brown morning potion?”

            “Coffee?” Callum holds up the carry-out container with three cups he’d brought to bribe his friends.

            Claudia sighs and takes one. “Enter.”

            “Rayla has clearly been awake longer. She’s perkier for one thing, not to mention fully dressed in workout leggings, a racerback tanktop, and sports bra. “Ooh, coffee!” She makes grabby hands until Callum hands one over.

            “So, what’s the crisis?” she asks, taking a swig.

            “I don’t always come to see you when there’s a crisis,” Callum says, miffed.

            Claudia raises an eyebrow and Rayla snorts.

            “Fine, okay, I need help.”

            “You said,” Claudia points out.

            “It’s Valentines’ Day,” Callum begins.

            “You totally forgot it’s Valentines’ Day, didn’t you,” Rayla says.

            Callum hangs his head over his own cup of coffee. “Yes.”

            Claudia huffs, “Soren probably forgot too.”

            Callum throws up his hands, “But what if he didn’t?”

            “Then just get something nice,” Claudia suggests.

            “What’s nice?!” Callum practically squeaks.

            Rayle smacks him upside the head and he yelps. “What was that for?”

            She frowns at him, “Sorry. Reflex.”

            “You have a ‘hitting me’ reflex?”

            “Only when you’re being dumb.”

            Callum heaves a dramatic sigh and Rayla smacks him again.

            Claudia, more awake now that she has coffee in her, reaches over and takes his hand. “Callum. This is not a crisis. You and Soren have been friends since you were basically babies. You don’t have to do the sappy, ridiculous Valentines’ Day thing if that isn’t right for the two of you. And I don’t think it is. Think about what’s meaningful and special for the two of you. And do something along those lines.”

            Callum actually feels a little better, hearing that. “Thanks, Clauds.”

            “What, no ‘thank you Rayla’?” Rayla demands.

            “All you did was hit me!”

            “With love!”

…

            In the end, Callum defaults to an old classic. The movie marathon. A staple of their childhood.

            With dinosaurs for flavor.

            He knocks on Soren’s door, weirdly nervous.

            Soren answers, grinning that crooked, casual, slightly dopey Soren grin and Callum can’t help it, he tips forward and rests his forehead on Soren’s broad chest.

            “Tough day?” Soren asks.

            “Had a crisis. Figured it out. Nearly pushed one of my classmates in The Hole. Refrained. I should be sainted.”

            Soren chuckles. “Is that related to the crisis?”

            “No, he was just an ass and The Hole was there.”

            Soren rests his chin on top of Callum’s head and hums. “I can come up with a haiku for you. Would that make you happy?”

            “No.”

            “Are you suuuure?”

            “Fine.”

            “Ahem, Okay. Alright.”

            “Go ahead.”

            “Don’t rush my artistic process.”

            “Okay. Are you done processing?”

            Soren clears his throat, “I’m Soren, flying/My boyfriend likes dinosaurs/I like him a lot.”

            Callum screws up his face against Soren’s chest, biting back a laugh, “Really? Is that? Is that even a haiku?”

            “Sure it is. I’m taking a poetry class. I know things.”

            “You picked that one because you thought it would be an easy A,” Callum points out.

            “Yeah, and I have a natural talent for it.” Callum can hear the grin in Soren’s voice and it’s irresistible enough Callum actually pulls back to see it on his face.

            “Hi there,” Soren smacks a sloppy kiss to Callum’s forehead, “Happy Valentine’s Day. Want spaghetti? I made lots.”

            “Yeah, that sounds good,” Callum finds himself smiling helplessly up at his great fluffy goof of a boyfriend. Then he remembers what’s in the backpack he’s still wearing, “Oh, wait,” he shrugs off the bag, unzips it and digs around before he fishes out the DVD cases he finds inside, “Happy Valentines’ Day, I didn’t know what to do for that kind of thing, so I panicked and checked out all the original Jurassic Park movies from the library and figured we could do a marathon…?”

            Soren kisses him and honestly it’s a surprise but the kind of surprise Callum likes, likes a lot actually, so he just goes with it. They stand there in the doorway for a long, long moment, the DVD cases weirdly squished between their bodies, Callum’s backpack hanging awkwardly from his elbow, bugs definitely getting into Soren’s place, it’s awkward and weird and perfect.

            They break apart and Soren grins again, completely unrepentant. “Happy Valentines’ Day. Let’s eat pasta and watch dinosaurs.”

            Callum follows him inside, smiling quietly to himself, his hand in Soren’s.

            It’s a good Valentine’s Day.

**Author's Note:**

> Fic title is from 'Aquaman' by Walk the Moon. 
> 
> I love hearing from y'all, feel free to comment, kudos, or bookmark!
> 
> AND AGAIN, HAPPY PRIDE MONTH, MY DEARS.


End file.
